1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to bale handling systems, and is more particularly concerned with a bale handling mechanism for a tractor mounted front end loader.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As is well known to those skilled in the art hay bales which are loosely positioned with respect to each other are difficult to pick up, transfer and stack. An attendant disadvantage is that loosely positioned bales cause loose stacks in which the material may become damaged due to the effects of snow, rain or the like.
Various structures have been used by the art to handle bales. One such device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,420,564, Doyne A. Jensen. The Jensen apparatus includes a plurality of horizontally extending, rotatably mounted rods each of which carry a plurality of arcuately shaped tines which are rotated into and out of engagement with the bales by a lever mechanism under the control of a hydraulic cylinder. In the apparatus disclosed by Jensen, the hydraulic cylinder is pivotally connected to a lever arm which is in turn pivotally connected to a fixed part of the frame, while the piston of the cylinder is similarly connected to a second lever arm which is pivotally connected to a fixed part of the frame. As disclosed by Jensen, the positions at which the cylinder and its piston are connected to the respective pivotal members is important in that it determines the amount of movement required by the piston to rotate the arcuate tines a desired amount. With such an operating mechanism, however, when uneven forces are encountered in the bale across the width of the bale loading mechanism, engagement between some of the tines and the bales may be incomplete and therefore somewhat ineffective so that the bales cannot be properly handled and the mechanism may be damaged. These and other disadvantages are present with such structure and applicants structure is different than the structure of the above patent and other prior art.